ERO Boston arrests Dominican national charged locally with domestic kidnapping, violating protection order

PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Enforcement and Removal Operations Boston apprehended a 22-year-old Dominican noncitizen charged in Providence with domestic kidnapping and violating a protection order. Deportation officers with ERO Boston’s Providence field office arrested Carlos Sebastian Natera-Santa on May 25 in Providence.

“Carlos Sebastian Natera-Santa was arrested by local police for domestic kidnapping, then five months later, he was arrested again for violating a protection order,” said ERO Boston Field Officer Director Todd M. Lyons. “He not only allegedly showed a complete disregard for the law, he clearly posed a threat to the residents of our Rhode Island communities. ERO Boston will continue our mission of prioritizing public safety by arresting and removing the most egregious noncitizen offenders from New England.”

U.S. Border Patrol arrested Natera-Santa after he unlawfully entered the United States March 9, 2023, near Lukeville, Arizona. Officials placed Natera-Santa into removal proceedings and issued him a notice to appear before a Department of Justice immigration judge.

Border Patrol transferred Natera-Santa to ERO Florence’s custody March 15, 2023. Later that day, ERO Florence released him.

The Providence Police Department arrested him Oct. 13, 2023, for the charges of domestic kidnapping and fraudulent use of credit cards. Authorities released him the next day.

On March 12, 2024, the Rhode Island State Police arrested Natera-Santa for violation of a no contact order.

ERO Boston lodged an immigration detainer against Natera-Santa with the Adult Correctional Institute in Cranston March 16. However, the Rhode Island Sheriff’s Office refused to honor the detainer and released Natera-Santa from custody May 25.

Deportation officers with ERO Boston’s Providence field office arrested Natera-Santa on May 25 in Providence. He will remain in ERO custody pending the outcome of his removal proceedings.

As part of its mission to identify and arrest removable noncitizens, Enforcement and Removal Operations lodges immigration detainers against noncitizens who have been arrested for criminal activity and taken into custody by state or local law enforcement. An immigration detainer is a request from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to state or local law enforcement agencies to notify ICE as early as possible before a removable noncitizen is released from their custody. Detainers request that state or local law enforcement agencies maintain custody of the noncitizen for a period not to exceed 48 hours beyond the time the individual would otherwise be released, allowing ERO to assume custody for removal purposes in accordance with federal law.

Detainers are critical public safety tools because they focus enforcement resources on removable noncitizens who have been arrested for criminal activity. Detainers increase the safety of all parties involved — ERO personnel, law enforcement officials, removable noncitizens and the public — by allowing an arrest to be made in a secure and controlled custodial setting as opposed to at-large within the community. Because detainers result in the direct transfer of a noncitizen from state or local custody to ERO custody, they also minimize the potential that an individual will reoffend. Additionally, detainers conserve scarce government resources by allowing ERO to take criminal noncitizens into custody directly rather than expending resources locating these individuals at-large.

ERO conducts removals of individuals without a lawful basis to remain in the United States, including at the order of immigration judges with Department of Justice’s Executive Office for Immigration Review. The Executive Office for Immigration Review is a separate entity from the Department of Homeland Security and ICE. Immigration judges in these courts make decisions based on the merits of each individual case, determining if a noncitizen is subject to a final order of removal or eligible for certain forms of relief from removal.

As one of ICE’s three operational directorates, ERO is the principal federal law enforcement authority in charge of domestic immigration enforcement. ERO’s mission is to protect the homeland through the arrest and removal of those who undermine the safety of U.S. communities and the integrity of U.S. immigration laws, and its primary areas of focus are interior enforcement operations, management of the agency’s detained and non-detained populations, and repatriation of noncitizens who have received final orders of removal. ERO’s workforce consists of more than 7,700 law enforcement and non-law enforcement support personnel across 25 domestic field offices and 208 locations nationwide, 30 overseas postings, and multiple temporary duty travel assignments along the border.

Members of the public with information regarding child sex offenders can report crimes or suspicious activity by dialing the ICE Tip Line at 866-DHS-2-ICE (866-347-2423) or completing the online tip form.

Learn more about ERO Boston’s mission to increase public safety in our New England communities on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @EROBoston.